Legal claims defining the scope of protection. Each claim is shown in both the original legal language and a plain English translation.
1. An accessory for affecting one or more features of a portable electronic device that can be brought into a vicinity having a radio with a spaced pair of speakers, the accessory comprising: a sender for initiating at a time reference transmission of an RF test signal at said portable electronic device, said RF test signal being arranged to cause said radio to produce a distinct pair of audio responses from the spaced pair of speakers; and a discriminator for determining for the spaced pair of speakers the return delay between transmission of said RF test signal and arrival of the distinct pair of audio responses at said portable electronic device, said discriminator operable to use the return delay relative to the time reference to produce a pair of data corresponding to absolute distances of the portable electronic device from the spaced pair of speakers.
An accessory detects a portable electronic device (like a phone) inside a car and can disable its features. The accessory transmits an RF signal that the car radio picks up, generating distinct sounds from the left and right speakers. The accessory measures the time it takes for those sounds to reach the phone. By knowing the time delay, the accessory calculates the phone's distance from each speaker and uses those distances as data to decide whether or not to disable the phone's features. The timing starts when the RF signal is transmitted.
2. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said discriminator is operable to disable at least one of the one or more features of the portable electronic device based, at least in part, on the difference between the return delay of the pair of speakers.
Building upon the previous description, the accessory disables phone features (as described previously) if the difference in sound arrival times between the left and right speakers is significant. This difference in arrival times indicates the phone is close to one speaker and potentially in the driver's hand, triggering the disabling of features.
3. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said discriminator is operable to disable at least one of the one or more features of the portable electronic device only if the return delay of one of the pair of speakers exceeds the return delay of the other one of the pair of speakers by a predetermined amount.
Expanding on the initial accessory design, the accessory only disables phone features (as described in the first claim) if the sound from one speaker arrives a certain amount of time *later* than the sound from the other speaker. This threshold prevents accidental feature disabling due to minor variations or incorrect readings.
4. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said discriminator is operable to disable at least one of the one or more features of the portable electronic device if (a) the return delay of one of the pair of speakers exceeds the return delay of the other one of the pair of speakers by a predetermined amount, and (b) the return delay of at least one of the pair of speakers is less than a predetermined limit.
Building upon previous claims, the accessory disables features (as described in the first claim) only if two conditions are met: (a) the difference in sound arrival times between the left and right speakers exceeds a threshold, and (b) at least one speaker's sound arrives within a certain time limit. This ensures that the phone is both close enough to the speakers and that a significant time difference is noticed, indicating the phone is in a specific location relative to the speakers to disable its features.
5. An accessory according to claim 4 wherein said portable electronic device is a cell phone and said discriminator is operable to disable telephonic communication and texting with said cell phone.
If the portable electronic device is a cell phone, then the accessory from the previous claim disables calling and texting functionality when the conditions for disabling are met (as described previously), meaning that the difference in sound arrival times between the left and right speakers exceeds a threshold, and at least one speaker's sound arrives within a certain time limit.
6. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said portable electronic device has an acoustic transducer, said discriminator being coupled to said acoustic transducer in order to detect arrival of the distinct pair of audio responses at said portable electronic device.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) uses a microphone (acoustic transducer) on the portable electronic device to detect the arrival of the distinct sounds from the car speakers. This microphone input is how the accessory 'hears' the speaker sounds and measures the arrival times.
7. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said sender is operable to send an RF probe signal that changes frequency over time with a resolution sized to ensure arrival at a sensitive frequency to which the radio is tuned, said discriminator being operable to detect a change in sound from the pair of speakers caused by said RF probe signal, said sender being operable to initiate transmission of said RF test signal at said sensitive frequency.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) scans for the radio's tuned frequency by sending a sweeping RF probe signal. When the probe signal causes a change in the speaker sound, the accessory locks onto that frequency. Then, the accessory transmits the RF test signal at that specific frequency, generating distinct speaker sounds used to measure arrival times.
8. An accessory according to claim 7 wherein said RF probe signal is arranged to mute said radio at said sensitive frequency, said discriminator being operable to detect a cessation of sound from the pair of speakers caused by said RF probe signal.
The RF probe signal described in the previous claim is designed to briefly silence the radio when it hits the tuned frequency. The accessory (as described in the first claim) detects this brief silence in the speaker sound to identify the radio's tuned frequency and enable the radio to generate distinct speaker sounds used to measure arrival times.
9. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein the vicinity is a vehicle, the accessory comprising: a motion detector coupled to said sender for detecting motion of the vehicle and enabling said sender upon the vehicle moving in a predetermined manner.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) is used in a vehicle and includes a motion detector. The accessory starts sending RF test signals only when the vehicle is moving in a specific way, preventing it from operating when the vehicle is stationary, thus activating features only during driving.
10. An accessory according to claim 9 wherein said motion detector is an accelerometer.
The motion detector in the previous claim is an accelerometer, which measures acceleration to detect vehicle movement. This accelerometer is coupled to the sender for detecting motion of the vehicle and enabling said sender upon the vehicle moving in a predetermined manner, to start sending RF test signals only when the vehicle is moving in a specific way.
11. An accessory according to claim 9 wherein said motion detector is a listening circuit for detecting sounds signifying vehicle motion.
The motion detector in the accessory (as described previously) is a listening circuit that detects sounds associated with vehicle motion, such as engine noise or tire sounds. This sound detection is used to start the accessory's RF signal transmission. This listening circuit is coupled to said sender for detecting motion of the vehicle and enabling said sender upon the vehicle moving in a predetermined manner.
12. An accessory according to claim 9 wherein said motion detector is a GPS system.
The motion detector in the accessory (as described previously) is a GPS system. The GPS detects vehicle movement and triggers the RF signal transmission. This GPS system is coupled to the sender for detecting motion of the vehicle and enabling said sender upon the vehicle moving in a predetermined manner.
13. An accessory according to claim 9 wherein said motion detector is an RF listening circuit for detecting EM stray signals signifying vehicle motion.
The motion detector in the accessory (as described previously) is an RF listening circuit that detects electromagnetic (EM) signals emitted by the vehicle when it's in motion, such as those generated by the engine or other electrical systems. This EM detection is used to start the accessory's RF signal transmission, and is coupled to the sender for detecting motion of the vehicle and enabling said sender upon the vehicle moving in a predetermined manner.
14. An accessory according to claim 9 wherein said motion detector is operable to detect cessation of motion of the vehicle and disable said sender upon the vehicle ceasing movement for a predetermined interval.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) stops sending RF test signals if the vehicle remains stationary for a set period of time. This prevents the accessory from continuously operating when the vehicle is parked, because the motion detector is operable to detect cessation of motion of the vehicle and disable said sender upon the vehicle ceasing movement for a predetermined interval.
15. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said RF test signal is a frequency modulated signal carrying information for a right and left channel.
The RF test signal transmitted by the accessory (as described in the first claim) is a frequency modulated (FM) signal that carries separate audio information for the left and right channels of the car radio.
16. An accessory according to claim 15 wherein said right and left channel are capable of carrying information representing sounds in the upper octave of human hearing, said right and left channel each carrying information representing a tone burst located in the upper octave of human hearing.
The left and right audio channels within the FM signal (as described previously) contain sounds in the higher frequency range of human hearing, specifically tone bursts located in this range.
17. An accessory according to claim 16 wherein said right and left channel each carry information representing a tone burst with a frequency content centered at a frequency in the range of 14 to 15 kHz.
The tone bursts in the left and right audio channels (as described previously) are centered around a frequency between 14 and 15 kHz.
18. An accessory according to claim 15 wherein said right and left channel each carry information representing a tone burst at different times.
The tone bursts in the left and right audio channels (as described in claim 15) are played at slightly different times.
19. An accessory according to claim 15 wherein said right and left channel each carry information representing an encoded signal.
The left and right audio channels in the FM signal (as described in claim 15) each contain an encoded signal.
20. An accessory according to claim 15 wherein said discriminator creates a delayed replica of the distinct pair of audio responses.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) creates a delayed copy of the distinct audio sounds from the car speakers.
21. An accessory according to claim 20 wherein said discriminator correlates the delayed replica of the distinct pair of audio responses with the distinct pair of audio responses actually arriving at said portable electronic device, said delayed replica being delayed by a preprogrammed amount.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) compares the real-time distinct speaker sounds with the delayed copy of those sounds. The delay of the copy is pre-programmed. The accessory correlates the delayed replica of the distinct pair of audio responses with the distinct pair of audio responses actually arriving at said portable electronic device.
22. An accessory according to claim 20 wherein said discriminator performs a phase comparison between the delayed replica of the distinct pair of audio responses and the distinct pair of audio responses actually arriving at said portable electronic device, said delayed replica being delayed by a preprogrammed amount.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) compares the phase of the real-time distinct speaker sounds with the phase of the delayed copy of those sounds. The delay of the copy is pre-programmed. The accessory performs a phase comparison between the delayed replica of the distinct pair of audio responses and the distinct pair of audio responses actually arriving at said portable electronic device.
23. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said sender comprises: a processor for producing a right and a left audio signal, and an FM modulator for producing the RF test signal modulated to carry the right and the left audio signal.
The accessory's signal sender (as described in the first claim) includes a processor that generates separate left and right audio signals and an FM modulator that combines these signals into the RF test signal.
24. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said sender comprises: a processor for producing a pilot tone, a first audio signal on a subcarrier and a second audio signal; a summing circuit for producing a sum signal signifying the sum of the pilot tone, the first audio signal and the second audio signal; an FM modulator for producing the RF test signal modulated by the sum signal.
The accessory's signal sender (as described in the first claim) generates a pilot tone, a first audio signal on a subcarrier, and a second audio signal. These signals are combined, and then used to modulate the RF test signal via an FM modulator.
25. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said sender comprises: a processor for producing sum signal signifying the summation of a pilot tone, a first audio signal on a subcarrier and a second audio signal; an FM modulator for producing the RF test signal modulated by the sum signal.
The accessory's signal sender (as described in the first claim) creates a combined signal that includes a pilot tone, a first audio signal on a subcarrier, and a second audio signal. This combined signal is then used to modulate the RF test signal via an FM modulator.
26. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein said accessory is arranged to defeat deception with a handheld radio having a relatively reduced bass audio content, the accessory comprising: an analyzer coupled to said discriminator for determining bass audio content of the distinct pair of audio responses at said portable electronic device, said analyzer being operable to nullify the discriminator if the distinct pair of audio responses has an audio bass content less than a predetermined standard.
The accessory (as described in the first claim) prevents being tricked by handheld radios that might have less bass. It analyzes the bass content of the speaker sounds and disables the distance calculation if the bass level is below a certain threshold.
27. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein the radio has four quadraphonic channels with an additional spaced pair of rear speakers, said RF test signal being arranged to cause said radio to produce a distinct pair of audio responses from the pair of speakers, and a distinguishable pair of audio returns from said additional spaced pair of rear speakers.
If the car radio has a quadraphonic system with four speakers (two front, two rear), the RF test signal from the accessory (as described in the first claim) generates distinct sounds from all four speakers. The accessory measures the sound arrival times from both the front and rear speaker pairs.
28. A method for affecting one or more features of a portable electronic device that can be brought into a vicinity having a radio with a spaced pair of speakers, the method comprising the steps of: initiating at a time reference transmission of an RF test signal at said portable electronic device, said RF test signal being arranged to cause said radio to produce a distinct pair of audio responses from the spaced pair of speakers; determining for the spaced pair of speakers the return delay between transmission of said RF test signal and arrival of the distinct pair of audio responses at said portable electronic device; and using the return delay relative to the time reference to produce a pair of data corresponding to absolute distances of the portable electronic device from the spaced pair of speakers.
A method involves detecting a portable electronic device (like a phone) inside a car and potentially disabling its features. The method transmits an RF signal that the car radio picks up, generating distinct sounds from the left and right speakers. It measures the time it takes for those sounds to reach the phone. By knowing the time delay, it calculates the phone's distance from each speaker, and uses those distances to decide whether or not to disable the phone's features. The timing starts when the RF signal is transmitted.
29. A method according to claim 28 comprising the step of: disabling at least one of the one or more features of the portable electronic device based, at least in part, on the difference between the return delay of acoustic signals at the pair of speakers.
In addition to the previous method, disabling phone features is based on the difference in sound arrival times between the left and right speakers.
30. An accessory according to claim 1 wherein the sender is operable to transmit the RF test signal with a transmission scheme selected from one of (a) frequency modulation (FM), (b) X-modulation (XM), (c) amplitude modulation (AM), (d) quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), (e) bi-phase shift keying (BPSK), (f) quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), and (g) discrete sequence spread spectrum (DSSS).
The accessory's sender (as described in the first claim) can transmit the RF test signal using various methods like frequency modulation (FM), X-modulation (XM), amplitude modulation (AM), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), bi-phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), or discrete sequence spread spectrum (DSSS).
31. An accessory for affecting one or more features of a portable electronic device that can be brought into a vicinity having a receiver associated with one or more electronic to audio transducers, the accessory comprising: a sender for initiating a signal with a time reference that is associated with an RF test signal at said portable electronic device, said RF test signal being arranged to cause said receiver to produce a distinct audio response from the one or more electronic to audio transducers; and a discriminator for determining for the one or more electronic to audio transducers the return delay between the reference time of said RF test signal and arrival of the audio response at said portable electronic device, said discriminator operable to use the return delay relative to the time reference to produce data corresponding to absolute distance of the portable electronic device from the one or more electronic to audio transducers.
An accessory detects a portable electronic device and can affect its features. It transmits an RF test signal that causes a receiver to produce an audio response from one or more speakers. The accessory determines the return delay between the reference time of the RF test signal and arrival of the audio response, then uses this return delay to produce data corresponding to the absolute distance of the portable electronic device from the one or more speakers.
32. A method for affecting one or more features of a portable electronic device that can be brought into a vicinity having a receiver with one or more electronic to audio transducers, the method comprising the steps of: initiating an RF test signal with an associated time reference at said portable electronic device, said RF test signal being arranged to cause said receiver to produce a distinct audio response from the one or more electronic to audio transducers; determining for the one or more electronic to audio transducers the return delay between the reference time of said RF test signal and arrival of the distinct audio response at said portable electronic device; and using the return delay relative to the associated time reference to produce data corresponding to absolute distance of the portable electronic device from the one or more electronic to audio transducers.
A method detects a portable electronic device and can affect its features. The method includes: transmitting an RF test signal that causes a receiver to produce an audio response from one or more speakers, determining the return delay between the reference time of the RF test signal and arrival of the audio response, and using the return delay to produce data corresponding to the absolute distance of the portable electronic device from the one or more speakers.
Unknown
August 29, 2017
Browse 5M+ US patents with plain-English claim translations and AI-generated analysis.